NEW YORK — NBC News went into damage-control mode a day after the public symbol of the network, anchor Brian Williams, faced a torrent of derision and criticism for telling a story about his wartime reporting that has proved to be untrue.
As disapproval roared on social media, NBC sought to protect and defend Williams, its anchor since 2004.
Williams conceded Wednesday that he “misremembered” an incident in March 2003 as he and an NBC crew were embedded with U.S. troops at the start of the invasion of Iraq.
Williams has said on several occasions that he was traveling in an American military helicopter when it was damaged by rocket fire. Instead, Williams acknowledged this week, he was in a second helicopter that was not damaged and that he had “conflated” his memory of the two aircraft. He apologized Wednesday on “Nightly News with Brian Williams.”
NBC’s response to the revelation has been a nonresponse, at least publicly.
The news division made no public statements about Williams on Thursday. No disciplinary measures or internal investigation have been disclosed — an otherwise routine practice for news organizations faced with high-profile misfeasance or malfeasance.
Williams assumed his regular anchoring role on Thursday’s evening news.
“You could say it’s business as usual,” said one NBC executive. “He has the whole support of NBC.”
This executive, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to speak on behalf of the network, said NBC News’ top managers were surprised to learn that Williams’ story was in error after he posted an apology to several service members on NBC News’ Facebook page during the weekend. The executive said an informal inquiry probably will be carried out, but the working assumption was that Williams had made “an honest mistake.”
NBC’s response suggests that it will attempt to ride out public criticism of Williams and hope that it hasn’t damaged his standing among viewers and advertisers.
Meanwhile, tweets with the hashtag #BrianWilliamsMemories joked that he blew up the Death Star and saved someone from a polar bear. Photoshopped pictures showed Williams reporting from the moon and riding shotgun with O.J. Simpson in his Ford Bronco.
“How could you expect anyone who served in the military to ever see this guy onscreen again and not feel contempt? How could you expect anyone to believe he or the broadcast he leads has any credibility?” wrote critic David Zurawik of The Baltimore Sun.
Rich Krell, who piloted the helicopter Williams was flying in that day, told CNN on Thursday that although the helicopter in front of Williams was hit by the grenade, all three aircraft were hit by small arms fire. He seemed to take Williams’ account in stride. “After a while, with combat stories, you just go ‘whatever,’ ” Krell said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
